On the same day that the Swope Park Rangers advanced to the Western Conference Finals of the USL Cup Playoffs for a second straight year, the Sporting KC U-19s and U-17s earned victories of their own against Real Colorado at Fort Hays State University Soccer Stadium.
Saturday's U.S. Soccer Development Academy tripleheader saw Sporting KC win two of three matches versus Real Colorado, both of the shutout variety.
The U-15s (1-6-0, 3 points) kicked off the afternoon with a narrow 1-0 defeat, conceding shortly after halftime in an evenly contested matchup. However, momentum would shifted in favor of Sporting KC for the rest of the day.
The U-17s (4-3-0, 12 points) snapped a two-game losing skid with a hard-fought 1-0 triumph, breaking through in the 23rd minute when Alex Glynn's teasing ball into the box was volleyed home by Mitch Eise. Sporting KC was unable to cash in on a handful of chances from that point forward, but goalkeeper Grant Calvert's clean sheet helped secure all three points.
The U-19s (5-2-0, 15 points) kept pace near the top of the Frontier Division standings after prevailing 2-0 in Saturday's final contest. Wilson Harris bagged his team-leading eighth goal of the Development Academy season two minutes before halftime on an assist from Roman Knox. The result remained up in the air until the 88th minute, when Grayson Barber did well to win a penalty kick that Knox confidently converted to seal the win.
UP NEXT: TEXAS TRIPLEHEADER
All three Academy clubs will continue their Development Academy campaigns next Saturday, Nov. 4, with a tripleheader against Solar SC in Colleyville, Texas. The U-15s will kick off at 10 a.m. CT, followed by the U-17s at noon and the U-19s at 2:30 p.m. Follow @SKCAcademy on Twitter for live updates throughout the day and for the duration of the 2017-18 season.
